Electronic 1098-T Option Now Available

The IRS regulations state that each student who wishes to receive their 1098-T electronically must provide his/her consent electronically. To choose to receive your 1098-T electronically, log onto your AppalNet Self Service account and click on the Self Service tab. Click on the Student tab and then click on Student Accounts. At the bottom of the list, select "Opt out of 1098-T Mailing". Read the online consent documentation and if you agree, click the My Choice box beside Consent to receive 1098-T electronically. Click Submit to submit your consent.

Once you have given consent, you will not be mailed a 1098-T and must return to Self Service after January 31st of the appropriate year to view/print a copy of your 1098-T. Your consent will be valid for subsequent tax years unless revoked by you or this service is not supported in a future given tax year. You may revoke your consent and receive a paper 1098-T form by returning to the electronic consent link on your Appalnet and unchecking the box to revoke consent or by providing written notice to the Student Accounts Office.

Form 1098-T Information

The American Opportunity Credit (replaced the Hope Scholarship credit in 2009) and the Lifetime Learning Credit, also referred to as education credits, were created by the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997. The details of these and other higher education tax benefits associated with the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, including a description of qualifying expenses, can be found on the IRS website, at https://www.irs.gov/individuals/students.

In January each year Appalachian State University will issue a Form 1098-T to each qualifying student indicating the amount of qualified tuition and related expenses charged by the university, as defined by the IRS, that have been paid in a given tax year. Additional information such as whether a student was registered at atleast "half-time" and was classified as "graduate" or "undergraduate" during the year. The purpose of the 1098-T is to assist students in identifying tax credit qualifying expenses. ASU is prohibited from giving tax advice, please consult your tax advisor for assistance.

IRS form 1098T will be presented to the taxpayer via the Appalnet Portal (if student opts in) or by mail to students eligible to receive a 1098T by January 31st, 2019 (post marked by if receiving via US Mail). Additionally, an email will be sent to the student and authorized users/parents once this form is available.

Amount Reported change in 2018 1098-T

The 2018 IRS form 1098-T is a transition year. In previous years, your 1098-T included a figure in Box 2 that represented the qualified tuition and related expenses (QTRE - as defined by the IRS) we chargedto your student account for the calendar (tax) year. Due to a change to institutional reporting requirements under federal law, beginning with tax year 2018, we will report in Box 1 the amount of QTRE you paid during the year. This change leads to all QTRE charges and payments towards those charges between Jan 1, 2018 - Jan 31, 2018 being reportable on IRS form 1098-T. Due to this change in reporting, for Spring 2019 registration charges, if a student registered prior to January 1st, 2019, but paid their bill after December 31, 2018 via any method including Financial Aid, those payments towards QTRE will show up on the 2019 1098-T. The calculation starting with the 2018 1098-T is a cumulative calculation of both QTRE charges and payments towards those charges beginning with January 1, 2018. In future years this should assist with the issue of charges being placed in November-December of one year and paid in the beginning of the next year.

Depending on your income (or your family’s income, if you are a dependent), whether you were considered full or half-time enrolled, and the amount of your qualified educational expenses for the year, you may be eligible for a federal education tax credit. (You can find detailed information about claiming education tax credits in IRS Publication 970, page 9.) The dollar amounts reported on your Form 1098-T may assist you in completing IRS Form 8863 – the form used for calculating the education tax credits that a taxpayer may claim as part of your tax return.

Special note for 2018:Due to the IRS mandate to change reporting methods, the Box 1 amount may not represent the actual amount you paid in 2018. The university began billing for Spring 2018 in November 2017; therefore, any charges for 2018 billed in calendar year 2017 were included on the 2017 1098-T as amounts billed. For this transitional year, any payments received in 2018 for charges billed in 2017 will NOT show in Box 1 unless new charges were added in 2018. You should work with your tax preparer to determine the amounts you can claim as payments for 2018 based upon your financial records.

Depending on your income (or your family’s income, if you are a dependent), whether you were considered full or half-time enrolled, and the amount of your qualified educational expenses for the year, you may be eligible for a federal education tax credit. (You can find detailed information about claiming education tax credits in IRS Publication 970, page 9.)

The dollar amounts reported on your Form 1098-T may assist you in completing IRS Form 8863 – the form used for calculating the education tax credits that a taxpayer may claim as part of your tax return.

Appalachian State University is prohibited from providing you with individual tax advice, but should you have questions, you should seek the counsel of an informed tax preparer or adviser. The Taxpayer should not contact ASU for explanations relating to the eligibility requirements for, and/or calculation of, any allowable education tax credit or tuition and fees deduction. The final decision for determining eligible educational expenses is the taxpayer's responsibility.